Major colleges and universities should place less importance on their athletic programs,
Pennsylvania adults say 60 - 33 percent, with a small gender gap, but a larger age difference,
according to a Quinnipiac University/ CBS News/New York Times poll released today.

NCAA penalties imposed on Penn State University for its handling of the Jerry Sandusky
scandal are too severe, 44 percent of Pennsylvania adults say, while 14 percent say they are not
severe enough and 33 percent say they are appropriate.

Pennsylvanians 18 to 34 years old are divided 49 - 47 percent on whether schools should
place less emphasis on athletics, while people 35 to 54 years old support a cutback 64 - 32
percent and people over 55 support a cutback 64 - 28 percent. Parents of children under 18
years old support a cutback 65 - 32 percent.

Looking at the NCAA penalties, 52 percent of people in households where someone has
or is attending Penn State say the penalties are too severe, while 12 percent say they are not
severe enough and 32 percent say they are about right. Findings are consistent among men and
women, but there is a generation gap as 38 percent of people under 35 years old say the penalties
are too severe, compared to 50 percent of people over 55 years old.

"The Sandusky scandal casts a long shadow. By nearly two to one, Pennsylvanians say it's time
to throttle back on high-powered college athletic programs," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the
Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "Parents, perhaps paying the tuition bill, support a cutback
more strongly than young people.

"The NCAA smack down of Penn State goes too far, most Nittany Lions lovers feel,"

From July 24 - 30, Quinnipiac University, in cooperation with CBS News and The New
York Times, surveyed 1,494 Pennsylvania adults with a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percent.
For more data or RSS feed- http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, or follow us on Twitter.

26. Do you think the penalties imposed by the NCAA on Penn State for its handling of the Sandusky scandal were appropriate, too severe, or not severe enough?